1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). More particularly, this invention pertains to a method of quantifying objects, including sub-voxel objects, in magnetic resonance images using multiple complex summations to solve for unknown characteristics of the objects.
2. Related Art
Brain and blood vessel MRI studies generate a need for the quantification of objects of interest, including sub-voxel objects. Such quantification is useful for imaging microbleeds, measuring calcium deposits, and specifically for molecular imaging where iron plays the role of a key biomarker of disease. Due to a limited signal-to-noise ratio, imaging duration, or electronic constraints, the spatial resolution in MRI at any given field strength is limited to a finite voxel size that may be larger or just slightly smaller than an object. Thus, the source of the signal can be just a few voxels or less than one voxel in size, making it very difficult to quantify the relative magnetic moment, susceptibility, or the exact volume of such objects.